RESEARCH NOTE ARE CULTURAL HERITAGE VISITORS REALLY DIFFERENT FROM OTHER VISITORS?

Authors: BONNIE S. MARTIN¹; WILLIAM C. BRIDGES²; WILLIAM VALLIERE³

Source: Tourism Analysis, Volume 9, Numbers 1-2, 2004 , pp. 129-134(6)

Publisher: Cognizant Communication Corporation

Key:

- Free Content

- New Content

- Subscribed Content

- Free Trial Content

Abstract:

The purpose of this study was to quantitatively identify the cultural heritage tourist to determine differences between other types of visitors and the cultural heritage tourist. Differences were measured on various dimensions of travel behavior and demographics, including activities participated in, expenditures, information sources used, and lodging preferences. Visitors to Vermont were surveyed between 1999 and 2000 to determine their visitation behavior and demographic profile. It was found that cultural heritage visitors were indeed different from other visitors on most measurements, implying that heritage planners and marketers should take these differences into consideration when planning and promoting cultural heritage tourism.

Keywords: Cultural heritage tourists; Travel behavior; Expenditures; Information sources; Lodging preferences

Document Type: Research article

Affiliations: 1: *Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC 2: †Clemson University, Clemson, SC 3: ‡University of Vermont, Bington, VT